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Review: All-New X-Factor #3
I need to talk about the cover of All-New X-Factor #3 for a moment. I don’t usually discuss covers in my reviews, but this needs to be said, because cats in comics is kind of my kryptonite (as well as Youtube videos of cats who sound like they’re talking). I dig the unique look of the All-New X-Factor covers. But this cover shows Gambit snuggling with a bunch of cats, and the quote, “I’m their freaking king” above his head. This led me to believe that X-Factor was going to meet an army of cats, and they were going to really like Gambit, and therefore he was going to declare himself the ‘King of Cats’! BUT IT DOESN’T HAPPEN!
All-New X-Factor #3
I kind of want to demand my money back. And I want the ‘King of the Cats’ to become a thing immediately.
All-New X-Factor #3 shows a bit of improvement over the first two issues, but not by much. The characters and their relationships are still paper thin, the premise is still a bit uncomfortable, and writer Peter David hasn’t found anything really interesting for anyone to do (other than crack crappy jokes). But somehow, this issue at least felt like it was put together a little better than the first two.
Comic Rating: 5/10 – Alright.
At three issues in, I see signs that some of my concerns with this comic might even out. PAD is clearly trying to build up the relationships between his main characters, but he’s still working with a bunch of blank slates, so there’s just not much he can do yet. I get why Gambit doesn’t trust Quicksilver, but the characters have never had anything to do with one another, so the mistrust just rings hollow. And Polaris has been such a non-player for the past few years that she doesn’t really have any sort of relationship with anything, whether it be her teammates or the Marvel Universe as a whole.
Also, when has Gambit been a crazy cat person? That cover isn’t about Gambit becoming King of the Cats, but instead its about how Gambit has brought three pet cats to live with him at Serval Industries. When did that happen? Has Gambit always had a bunch of pet cats and I’ve just never noticed?
Or is it another bit of plot that PAD has pulled over from Gambit’s recently cancelled solo series? I hope the lot of you were reading that series, because X-Factor’s second big mission is mired in characters and plot points from it. Of course, considering the series was cancelled due to low sales, I think we can all agree nobody was reading it.
But PAD forges ahead anyway! Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Movie Quicksilver Looks Like a Huge Dork
I’m not the first person on the Internet to say this, and I won’t be the last, but Quicksilver from this year’s X-Men: Days of Future Past movie looks like a huuuuge dork!
They took his name way too literally
He looks like the kind of guy who whines to Magneto whenever he calls him ‘Pietro’.
“But DaaaaAAAAaaad, my name is Quicksilver! Why don’t you ever take me seriously!?”
And I can just picture actor Evan Peters whining like that. This movie just took a big hit in credibility. I like the theory floating around the web that director Bryan Singer is purposefully trying to tank the character so that nobody takes him seriously when he shows up in The Avengers: Age of Ultron, where he’s probably going to be treated with much, much more respect. That sounds to me like exactly the sort of jerk move FOX would pull. They’re the ones who quickly found a way to squeeze Quicksilver into their X-Men movie after Joss Whedon announced he was using him for the Avengers sequel.
At least most of the other characters look good. Join me after the jump to see some of my favorites.
Review: All-New X-Factor #1
Sometimes you’ve just got to be careful what you wish for. The comic I was most looking forward to in the All-New Marvel NOW! has arrived in the form of All-New X-Factor #1, writer Peter David’s latest revival of his long-standing, moderately popular superhero team. Free of past continuity and characters, PAD has been given free reign to re-invent X-Factor as he sees fit, with a new cast, a new purpose and new momentum. So it really is a shame that this issue fails on every conceivable level.
X-Factor #1
All-New X-Factor #1 is as generic and mediocre a superhero comic as you could get in this day and age. From a boring plot to random characters to a premise that reeks of missed opportunities, every aspect of this comic is uninspired.
Comic Rating: 4/10 – Pretty Bad.
The last time PAD relaunched X-Factor – whether you count the MadroX mini-series or X-Factor #1 – the writer clearly had purpose. Built around the reinvention of the wildly underused Jamie Madrox, PAD’s vision included noir sensibilities, the mysteries of Layla Miller, shadowy villains and a cast of characters with rich histories together. Back then, PAD clearly had ideas. And he had heart.
But all of that is missing in All-New X-Factor #1.
The new relaunch falls victim to Marvel’s recent trend of just piling a bunch of random superheroes together and calling them a team. Again and again, Marvel has done this, whether it’s some new Avengers spin-off or multiple versions of X-Force. And maybe if one of your favorite characters is on that team, you’ll love the comic. But most of these books are just generic superhero stories starring random superheroes, and that’s exactly how the new X-Factor reads. Even the interesting new premise, that X-Factor is now the first corporately-owned superhero team in the Marvel Universe, is painfully generic.
The potential for some interesting ideas or styles is present, but time and again, PAD either skips right over them or doesn’t play them up nearly enough. He could get so much about of All-New X-Factor, but PAD and Marvel seem fine with settling for mediocrity.
I don’t give this comic a year.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Review: X-Factor #260
Whoa! Talk about cliffhangers! We’ve only got two issues left before the big finale, and writer Peter David hits us with a doozy of a revelation. I’ll spoil what happens in the synopsis, but just know that this might not actually be the ‘End of X-Factor’. We still don’t know what PAD’s next project at Marvel is going to be…but it looks like he might be dropping hints already. And I’m quite excited. Beyond that, X-Factor #260 is a good issue and a nice exploration of Polaris. Unfortunately, she’s had very little time to make an impression, so her goodbye isn’t that strong. But PAD once again does a respectable job saying goodbye (maybe) to one of his cast members.
X-Factor #260
The guest appearance by Quicksilver is awesome though.
Comic Rating: 7/10 – Good.
I have made my peace with the X-Factor‘s cancellation. And I’ve come to accept that it’s no longer the title I once loved. X-Factor settled into a calm, gentle sort of quality over the past few years. The issues are always entertaining and consistently good, but never great, and rarely do they say or do anything new. PAD writes some great characters, the art has always been quality; it’s just that the premise and the stories have all been kind of mediocre. Especially when compared to some of the other comics out there right now, especially at Marvel. It turns out that Marvel NOW! really did shake things up for my favorite publisher. There are so many great books at Marvel these days that I really have to step back and accept that X-Factor just isn’t one of them. Not anymore. It’s good, but it’s not Marvel NOW! good.
Also, personally, I miss the private investigators angle. That was a great premise for this comic, but hasn’t really been around in forever.
I like Polaris. I was really excited to see what PAD could do with her in the pages of X-Factor, and I’m disappointed that he’s run out of time. He had the beginnings of some good characterization, but never really got around to giving Polaris any storylines. She was kind of just there being gruff and stuff. So when the time comes to say goodbye, it’s basically just Polaris sitting around being gruff and stuff. It works for the character, it works for the issue, and it works as a goodbye. Polaris’ farewell actually even ties in with a goodbye to X-Factor as a whole, so that’s nice. The issue also features a cameo appearance by Quicksilver, and that kind of works to wrap-up his X-Factor appearances from a few years ago. That’s an unexpected plus.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Joss Whedon Reads My Blog!
Or at least that’s what I have to assume based on the idea that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch have been all but confirmed for Avengers 2! And they were No. 5 on my list of the 6 Avengers That I Absolutely Want to See in Future Movies. So by the mathematical process of ‘I’m Awesome’, we can naturally assume that Joss Whedon was trying to think up what to put into Avengers 2, he saw my blog post, and boom, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch!
Yep, brother and sister…
Unfortunately, this isn’t necessarily set in stone. But follow this logic.
Last week, Joss Whedon dropped this bombshell during an interview:
“I try not to think of it as topping it. I try to think of this as its own movie,” he replied. “Sometimes, yeah, I feel pressure […] But when you’re in the story and you’re dealing with these characters that you love, that everybody loves, when you’ve got the new characters sliding in next to them it’s very exciting. Then I don’t feel pressure, it’s like I’m reading my favorite comic.” He continued, “I’ve got these two characters … two of my favorite characters from the comic book … a brother-sister act … they’re in the movie …”
That’s pretty clear to us comic book geeks that he means Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch, who are twins.
Then this week, Entertainment Weekly puts out an article on Iron Man 3, and they write that an unnamed source has confirmed that the two characters are in the movie. EW confronted Marvel Movie Guru Kevin Feige about it, and Feige had this to say:
“I’m not confirming or denying. The draft could change six months from now.”
Which, despite his best efforts to remain mum, pretty much confirms that the two characters are in Joss Whedon’s first draft of the script. And while the movie is a long ways off, you just have to know it’s already in pre-production. A lot of work has to go into securing which characters appear in the movie, I imagine, especially these two. Because of licensing rights disputes, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch would require a lot of work, so I doubt Whedon is just tossing them around into scripts all willy nilly.
Feige said in April 2012 that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are in an odd place when it comes to the licensing rights. The two characters have always been known in the comics as Avengers…but they’re also both mutants, and the children of Magneto, which would theoretically put them in the X-Men films, which are owned by Fox. But Feige said last year that the rights are shared by both Marvel and Fox, and since Fox hasn’t put either of them in their X-Men films, perhaps they’re free for Marvel and Joss Whedon to use in Avengers 2.
Suffice to say, this is awesome news and I really hope the two characters make it into the sequel. Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch were amazing in The Ultimates, and they could be amazing in the next Avengers movie.
Also, Joss Whedon is more than welcome to keep reading my blog for ideas.
Henchman-4-Hire 